WASHINGTON — U.S. mortgage rates rose this week to the highest level since July.
The point of reference 30-year fixed rate borrowing rate rose to 6.91% from 6.85% last week, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac. It was at 6.62% a year ago.
The uptick in the expense of home loans reflects a rise in the debt safety yields that lenders use as a navigator to worth mortgages.
The average rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, popular with homeowners seeking to refinance, climbed to 6.13%, up from 6% and also the highest since July. It was at 5.89% a year ago.
yield rates have been climbing since the Federal safety net signaled last month that it expects to raise its point of reference rate just twice this year, down from the four cuts it projection in September.
The rationale the Fed is tapping the brakes is that expense boost remains stubbornly above the cental financial institution’s 2% target, even though it’s fallen from the heights it reached in mid-2022. Economists also worry that President-elect Donald Trump’s economic policies, notably his schedule to vastly boost tariffs on imports, could fuel expense boost.
